Blissfield will welcome the holiday season with Wassail Fest, 5K run and Parade of Lights

Brad Heineman, The Daily Telegram
·4 min read

BLISSFIELD — The village of Blissfield introduced its First Thursdays monthly promotional event at the start of this year.

While those events — held monthly through 2023 on the first Thursday of each month — concluded in October because of longstanding holiday events and traditions on the calendar for November and December, there will still be plenty of opportunities for people to support small businesses in Blissfield this weekend, which is shaping up to be festive, merry and seasonally appropriate.

Blissfield’s 12th Wassail Fest and the Miss River Raisin Scholarship Program’s Hot-Cha-Cha 5K Mug Run kick off a holiday weekend in Blissfield Friday, Dec. 8, that will wrap up Saturday, Dec. 9, with the annually held Parade of Lights.

Brandon Hudson, left, pours a taste of spiced wine to Amanda Ollila of Toledo during Blissfield's Wassail Fest on Dec. 7, 2018, in Blissfield. This year's Wassail Fest is Friday, Dec. 8, and will be held nearly simultaneously with the Hot-Cha-Cha 5K Mug Run that serves as fundraiser for the Miss River Raisin Scholarship Program.
Brandon Hudson, left, pours a taste of spiced wine to Amanda Ollila of Toledo during Blissfield's Wassail Fest on Dec. 7, 2018, in Blissfield. This year's Wassail Fest is Friday, Dec. 8, and will be held nearly simultaneously with the Hot-Cha-Cha 5K Mug Run that serves as fundraiser for the Miss River Raisin Scholarship Program.

Wassail Fest, scheduled from 6 to 8:30 p.m., is a Downtown Development Authority (DDA)/Main Street ticketed event that welcomes people to downtown Blissfield where they can stop inside participating businesses and indulge in some sample concoctions of wassail, which is a mulled or hot cider that traces its history of origin back to the Middle Ages of the south and west regions of England. By the 14th century, wassail came to be a hot drink of wine, beer or cider with spices, sugar and usually baked apples that was consumed around Christmastime.

At least one dozen alcoholic wassails can be tasted with some non-alcoholic versions provided at the Bliss-Liewert Senior Center and the Blissfield General Store. As people go from business to business, they will be able to vote on their favorite selection of wassail. At the end of the evening, all the votes will be tallied and the wassail with the most votes received earns the title of Village Wassail Meister for the conclusion of 2023 and until next year’s 13th annual Wassail Fest takes place.

Local bake shop Emmy’s Kitchen was the 2022 Wassail Meister and is looking to retain that title. Emmy’s Kitchen will have a wassail recipe inside Terry Insurance along with a selection from pet grooming business Hair of the Dog.

Other locations providing a wassail recipe are Stitches & Sterns, Blissfield Market, Blissfield State Bank, B-Town Bar & Grill, Blissfield Lions Club, Three Bridges Boutique, TLC Community Credit Union, Her Daughters Boutique, The Packrat and Lisa’s Brunch Box.

Because there are alcoholic beverages being served during Friday’s festival, photo identification is required for participation and people must be 21 years of age or older.

Preregistration is recommended at the Blissfield Village Office in downtown Blissfield at 130 S. Lane St., or people may sign up online by visiting blissfieldmichigan.gov. By preregistering, people might be able to receive a commemorative 2023 Wassail Fest mug, depending on availability. There will be day-of registration starting at 5:30 p.m. at That One Place in Blissfield, 121 S. Lane St. The cost is $30 per person.

Presenting sponsors include All Phase Roofing Services Plus, Momma Case’s Traveling Kitchen and Rotary Club of Blissfield.

Happening near simultaneously with Wassail Fest is the 11th annual Hot-Cha-Cha 5K Mug Run that serves as a fundraiser for the Miss River Raisin Scholarship Program.

Day-of registration for the 5K run throughout the streets of Blissfield starts at 5:30 p.m. and runners will take off at 6:30 p.m. Registration will be outside the Blissfield Township Office along Lane Street in downtown. Runners and 5K participants are asked to wear reflective running gear and lights. Children who are 6-12 years of age must run with an adult. Holiday costumes are welcome and encouraged. There will be a prize awarded to the 5K participant wearing the best costume.

Runners are pictured taking off from the starting line during the 2018 Hot-Cha-Cha 5K Mug Run in Blissfield, held in December as a fundraiser for the Miss River Raisin Scholarship Program. Holiday costumes and lights are encouraged to be worn by the participants.
Runners are pictured taking off from the starting line during the 2018 Hot-Cha-Cha 5K Mug Run in Blissfield, held in December as a fundraiser for the Miss River Raisin Scholarship Program. Holiday costumes and lights are encouraged to be worn by the participants.

An awards ceremony will follow the race with medals being awarded to the overall male and female runners, as well as the top two finishers in each male and female age division: 6-12, 13-20, 21-35, 36-49, 50-59, 60-69 and 70 or older.

Costs to take part in the 5K Mug Run are $28 for adults (21 or older), $20 for kids/young adults (ages 6-20) and $70 for a family price of participants that limits two adults per family. The family price is only available for those individuals who are all from the same household. Payment will be accepted at the red-topped tent near the Blissfield Township Office.

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Blissfield’s holiday weekend concludes on Dec. 9 with sparkling lights, decorated and festive floats and parade units adorned with holiday lights during the Parade of Lights, which starts at 7 p.m. Saturday and traverses downtown Blissfield. The parade begins and ends at Blissfield High School. Stitches & Sterns is the presenting sponsor.

New this year, and held prior to the start of the parade, will be carolers downtown along with fire pits for roasting marshmallows, a visit from the Snow Queen, a coffee cart provided by the Blissfield Coffee Company and more.

As usual, Santa Claus will be a highlight participant in the parade, which also will feature decorated floats, fire trucks, police cars and marching bands. Each parade entrant must feature holiday lights.

— Contact reporter Brad Heineman at bheineman@lenconnect.com or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: twitter.com/LenaweeHeineman.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Wassail Fest, 5K run, Parade of Lights welcome the holidays in Blissfield